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The cable machine is a versatile piece of equipment that can be used for a wide variety of different exercises.
In this article, we will take a look at a few exercises for men who want to get leaner and stronger arms.
Cable Exercises to Lose Arm Fat and Build Strength
Here's a look at five such exercises:
#1 Cable Face Pull
This exercise is a great way to focus on the upper back and triceps. It's also particularly effective for working out the muscles at the back of the arms, helping you develop a V-shaped torso.
Here's how this exercise is done:
- Stand with your feet shoulder-width apart, and hold a rope attachment close to your chest.
- Keeping your elbows in, and leaning forward slightly, slowly pull the rope upward till it reaches eye level or above (you may want to stand closer to the machine if this position is too challenging).
- Slowly lower the weight back down again till it reaches chest height; repeat for 10–12 reps.
#2 Cable Tricep Pushdown
Cable triceps pushdowns are a great exercise for targeting the triceps, which are the muscles on the back of the arms.
To do cable triceps pushdowns:
- Attach a straight bar to a high pulley station, and put it in an underhand grip (palms facing towards you; not parallel to the floor), with your hands about shoulder-width apart from each other. Stand with feet hip-distance apart.
- Keeping elbows close to your body, extend your arms till they’re fully extended and parallel to the floor.
- Your upper arms should be next to your ears. Pause here for a second before returning back down slowly using controlled motion without locking out the elbows.
#3 Cable Bicep Curl
Cable biceps curls are a great exercise to build the arms and develop strength. You can perform them standing or sitting, or do them with one arm or both.
Here's how they're done:
- Using a standard cable machine, attach a rope attachment to the pulley system at a fixed height below you.
- Grasp the handle of the rope attachment in your right hand, with your palm facing up (supinated grip).
- Sit tall with feet shoulder-width apart and knees bent slightly outwards.
- Lift weights straight up towards the ceiling till the elbow is fully extended; slowly lower back down towards the thighs till the forearm touches inner thigh.
- Repeat for the desired number of reps before resting for 20 seconds.
- Switch sides for another set if using two sets of 12 repetitions each would be beneficial to building muscle mass in this area.
#4 Cable Fly
Cable flys are an exercise that targets the chest. They're a great movement to help you build muscle and lose fat, and they're also a great option for beginners.
Here's how they're done:
- You can do cable flys in many different ways: you can use both arms at the same time, or one at a time; you can work with low reps or higher reps; you can use machines or cables (either way will work).
- They're versatile, as they enable you to focus individually on each part of the chest.
- You can either do the high-to-low version by pulling the cables with the respective attachments from up to down, or do the low-to-high version by doing the opposite.
#5 Cable Crunch
Cable crunches are a great exercise for the abs and obliques. They target the deeper abdominal muscles and are more effective than supported abdominal exercises such as floor crunches or sit-ups.
They're done as follows:
- To do this exercise, you will need a cable machine with at least one side of the pulley handle that can be adjusted to change its height.
- Stand perpendicular to the cable machine so that it's on your left side.
- Attach two straps (or loops) onto each side of your torso by wrapping them around both shoulders and clipping them together in front of you at eye level using carabiners or clips (you can also use traditional weightlifting belt loops).
- Adjust the height of each strap so that they're snug but not too tight; you don't want them restricting blood flow through your arms or chest during this movement.
- Grab onto one end of each handle with an overhand grip (palms facing away from the body); straighten out your arms in front of you (back still parallel with the floor), and lean slightly forward so that your torso forms roughly 45 degrees relative to the floor while keeping arms extended throughout the exercise.
- That will help ensure optimal engagement from the core muscles being targeted along the lower back region.
- Bend knees slightly as if sitting back into a chair before returning to an upright position again after several seconds rest between reps so that there's no room left under tension applied within those muscle groups.
Takeaway
The cable machine is a versatile piece of equipment that can be used to build muscle and burn fat. The aforementioned workouts listed above are great for men looking to get a full body workout without having to go to the gym. They're also perfect for beginners who don't have any equipment at all to work with.
